MegaMan Zero: Shadows of the Past
by hylian90
Summary: This is the first book in a trilogy of three. They take place in a time after Neo Arcadia has fallen. They depict a tender love story, shocking betrayal, and the question of death far in the future. I hope you enjoy!


It has been five years since the disbanding of Neo Arcadia. Remnants of the evil government remain, scattered throughout the world. The evil incarnation of X has long since been destroyed. The data from the original MegaMan X was painstakingly recovered, and the true X was revived. A special branch of government has been put into place, designed specially to deal with remaining factions of Neo Arcadia: The Special Arcadian Defense Section; S.A.D.S. This unit is broken into separate strike teams, each headed by a Reploid hero. The organization in total was headed by Ciel, leader of the Resistance during the Neo Arcadia war. This title gave her substantial power within the defense department of the government. S.A.D.S. had been in place for more than three years, and had been swamped with missions since it's first day. Multiple teams were often deployed at once, whether they were working on separate missions or cooperating on the same one. One team in particular stood out from the rest. This is their story.

-----

Zero sat in his room within the S.A.D.S. headquarters, looking nostalgically through records of his team's past missions. His long, golden hair spilled over his shoulder as he watched the screen. It felt kind of strange watching himself go through those missions. His red armor shown brightly on the screen, his Z-Saber flashing as it sliced through enemies. Even today, his vibrant red armor was considered his trademark. His legs and arms were covered only by a thin black material, but he had yet to find a reason to complain.

There was a slight ping as the red light above his door came on, showing that someone was trying to enter. He walked slowly over to the doorway and pressed a button over a speaker.

"Who is it?" Zero asked into the speaker.

"Zero, it's Protoman. Can I come in?" came the responding voice. Zero opened the door, allowing Protoman to enter. As the door slid upward, Protoman's tall form and shaded eyes were revealed. Protoman had been with Zero since his team had been formed. How long had Zero known Protoman? He couldn't even remember. They had been friends since as long as he could remember. It had always struck many people as odd that Zero and Protoman were so much alike. Zero's Z-Saber and Protoman's Sword Arm were strikingly similar in strength and design, the only difference being that Protoman's sword was attached to his body. They were much the same in appearance as well. Both had sleek red armor and durable red helmets. Protoman, however, was taller, and had a black visor over his eyes. That visor also gave Protoman outstanding analyzation and scanning abilities. He could glance at an enemy and tell you their strength, weapons, abilities, and weakness. Seeing as Protoman was one of the first Reploids ever made, many people believed Protoman had been a prototype design for Zero. That only made them closer friends.

". . . got that empty look in your eyes. You're not listening, are you?'' Protoman was saying. Zero quickly snapped back to reality. Protoman was sitting there watching him, no doubt scanning him in one way or another.

"Oh, sorry, Protoman. I'm, uh, a little tired," Zero offered as an excuse.

"Oh, I should let you rest then," Protoman said, moving toward the door.

"No," Zero said quickly, pulling Protoman back, "It's fine. Now what were you saying?"

"I was asking what you were doing. Around three times," Protoman said, sounding slightly annoyed.

"Oh, I was just going through some old records," Zero replied. Protoman glanced over and picked up the old mission files off the bunk. As he was scrolling through them, Zero read several emotions. He had learned to tell how Protoman was feeling just by his mouth and face. He continued to watch Protoman flip through the digital files. Zero could tell he was having the same nostalgic feeling Zero felt earlier.

"It's kinda fun to look at these. It's been a while since we had a halfway interesting mission."

"It is," Zero said nodding, 'How long HAS it been since we've had a good mission?'

"It's been at least –" Before Protoman could finish his sentence, the intercom in Zero's room began beeping.

"Zero?" came the toneless voice, "your team needs to report to the briefing room immediately." And with that, the intercom clicked off. Protoman and Zero glanced at each other, and silently slipped out of the room and into the hallway.

-----

About halfway to the briefing room, they saw Roll rush out of her room, trying to carry several data files in her arms. They both chuckled slightly as she struggled with her load. Both Zero and Protoman laughed as Roll's files clatter onto the floor. They both knew why she had to carry all these discs. Roll had joined the team about three weeks after Zero and Protoman had started it. Early on, she showed a strong proficiency for collecting and interpreting mission data. She had never been the best in the field, however. Many of their assignments involved infiltrating an enemy fortress. Roll's flamboyant pink armor was a dead giveaway. She had only two real weapons. Her first and foremost was her arrow launcher. They had the strange ability to shut down enemies by eroding the microchips in their bodies.

"Oh, hey guys! Can you help me with these?" Roll said, looking back at them.

Her second weapon had no real name. She had two curved blades stretching back from her temples. She could flip these forward and back blindingly fast, creating an effective slicing attack. But it was purely close-range. Now she served mainly as the team's hacker and data interpreter. She had yet to find a computer she couldn't break into.

"Sure," Protoman was saying, "So what are all these about?" As he spoke, he bent over and started picking up the small discs. Zero got down to help them, as well.

"Ciel called and asked me to research a small factory on the outskirts of the city. She asked for floor plans, alternate entrances, history, the typical stuff."

"I assume our mission has something to do with this factory then?" Zero asked.

"I'll bet it's another they've-taken-the-factory mission. We'll have to go in and flush them out," Zero complained. These kinds of missions were common, and usually incredibly boring.

"Probably," Protoman sighed. Roll continued to pick up the discs. None of them were too thrilled to be doing this. The intercom clicked on again.

"Zero, your team is needed in the briefing room IMMEDIATELY."

"Let's go," Roll said, "We'll be in trouble if we're late."


End file.
